Why it feels hard to think through a problem

Do you ever feel stuck?

Blocked?

Or maybe every time you go to think about it, your mind clearly wants to think about something else? That's perfectly normal. Whether it's a personal problem like wanting to get into better shape, or a professional problem like coming up with a new content idea, feeling like you "can't" do something happens to everyone.

Sometimes, we don't allow our minds to think through a problem because we put pressure on ourselves to already know the answer. In our self talk, your inner narrative might be saying

• "you should know better"

• "c'mon, how do you not know this?"

• "it's crazy that you don't know this"

We shame ourselves for being slow, silly, or stupid. All of these emotions make it feel even harder to think through our problems.

Why talking helps

For most of us, no matter how stuck we feel, talking helps. Talking adds clarity. It feels like drawing back the curtains on our most organized thinking. Why does this happen?

Some call it Socratic questioning, the Eureka effect, or rubber duck debugging. Scientists such as linguists and psychiatrists each have their own understanding for why humans do better when we talk things out.

Like the philosophical question, "If a tree falls in a forest and there's no one around to hear it, does it even make a sound?", there's a question here as well:

If you talk out-loud and there's no one around to listen, were you even heard?

For most people, the answer is no. We're social beings and we need response in order to feel heard.

When you need a +1 to listen

If you need a +1 to feel heard, try using Brainstory to think through a problem. Sometimes we don't want to bother a friend, a family member, or a partner with our problem. Sometimes, they're just not available at that very moment. Brainstory is available to think through any problem, no matter the size, whenever you want.